


Fragments of Memory

by SetsuntaMew



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Abandoned Work - Unfinished and Discontinued, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Archived From FanFiction.Net, F/M, M/M, Multi, Post-Kingdom Hearts II
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2007-04-03
Updated: 2007-04-03
Packaged: 2019-09-16 03:04:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 12,894
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16945788
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SetsuntaMew/pseuds/SetsuntaMew
Summary: After being returned to Destiny Islands, normalcy has returned for Sora, Riku, and Kairi. Roxas, however, is unsatisfied with merely living in Sora's head, as well as not remembering his time in Organization XII.





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _For the sake of archiving what I've written, I'm preserving my author's notes...from when I was teenager....please keep that in mind before commenting on them._
> 
> And this, this is what happens when I spend more time reading fanfiction than doing homework. It's called a new fic from your friendly neighborhood Killian. I've had this baby hiding on my computer since, oh, December. I just found it last night and decided to post the prologue. And I really want to have an active _non_ AU fic up.
> 
> Disclaimer: Sadly, I do not own Kingdom Hearts. If I did, Axel and Roxas's last scene together in Final Mix would have had less talking and more making out.

Despite being gone for close to two years, Sora and Riku were still able to re-enroll in school. They had lots of catching up to do, of course, but everyone had been so very understanding. How could they not be? If not for the two, their entire world would no longer exist.

It had taken awhile, but Sora, Riku, and Kairi had finally settled back into a normal life. It was much different than before, but they were learning to live with it. Sora and Kairi had quite the adjustment to make, even more than Riku, really. Roxas and Naminé hadn't faded away, rather, they continued to exist in their Others' heads. It was more than the two Nobodies had expected to have, and they were learning to enjoy it.

However, after six months of this, Roxas wasn't satisfied. He'd never regained all of his memory and it was incredibly frustrating. In dreams, he sometimes got little bits, but they weren't much help, as he usually forgot most of them by the time he woke up.

Roxas had almost given up hope on ever regaining his memories, when Naminé started telling Sora about his forgotten memories of Castle Oblivion. Curious, Roxas questioned her, and she explained he work with taking apart and then eventually restoring Sora's memories. This lead to him asking her to help him with  _his_  loss of memory.

"I just want to remember everything," Roxas said, sighing. "I  _know_  that I spent about a year in Organization XIII and yet I barely have any memories of it. All I have are little snippets and glimpses."

"But why ask me? I wasn't there; I was busy chaining together Sora's memories," Naminé questioned.

"Because you work with memories! Do you think that you might be able to fix mine?"

"I...don't know. I'm sorry. I was the one who took apart Sora's memories, so that's how I was able to return them to normal. He never truly  _lost_  them; they were only disconnected deep within his heart." She sighed. "But yours...you didn't  _have_  a heart when you lost your memories. I'm not even sure how DiZ did it with that technology of his."

"So it's impossible?" Roxas was incredibly disappointed.

"I'm just not sure. I'll see if they reside anywhere in you. If they do I may be able to rechain them like I did with Sora's."

"But I've remembered bits of them! Shouldn't they be somewhere in there?"

"I'll see Roxas, but I can't promise anything, okay? I'll try."

**-x-x-x-x-x-**

A few days later, Roxas heard from Naminé again.

"I think I can do it."

"Really?" Roxas was thrilled.

"Don't get your hopes up or anything. It's going to be different than with Sora, because all I did was rearrange his. Yours were completely wiped."

"Will I forget the time I spent in Twilight Town and after like Sora did with Castle Oblivion?"

"I don't  _think_  so, but don't take my word for it yet. This is all different from anything I've had experience with, so I'm just kind of blindly going into it."

"Thanks, Naminé. For as much or as little as you can do. I just really want to know. I feel like I'm missing a part of myself."

"Well, at least you have a heart now."

"Yeah, one that I have to  _share_."

"Roxas...you and I have it better than any Nobody could ever hope for. We have our hearts. We didn't fade into darkness."

"And yet, I don't remember any of my time spent when I  _knew_  I didn't have a heart. All I know of is the time in the fake Twilight Town where I thought that I  _did_  have one. To me, this is...I don't know. I was used to  _more_."

Naminé sighed, giving him a sad look. "You  _always_  had more, even in the Organization. You had Axel."

"But I don't remember that! I want to!"

"You will. I'll...I don't know. I'll make it work. DiZ was..." Naminé stopped here, turning away.

"What?"

She shook her head.

"Tell me."

"Roxas...I know you hate the man, and I don't want to feed that hate any more than it's already been fed. He righted his wrongs in the end."

"And yet I'm stuck in Sora's head."

"It'll work out, someday. I can feel it. Kairi and Sora are done talking, so I'm going to have to go. I have to work on fixing your memories, you know."

**-x-x-x-x-x-**

Roxas didn't hear anything from Naminé about his memories for the next few weeks. She was always working on them, but refused to give him details. In dreams, he would see flashes of them sometimes, but only for a few seconds at the most. Normally, it wasn't even enough to ascertain who he was talking to or anything of the sort.

Then one night he had a memory that he could only describe as  _hot_. It was searing and brilliantly burning, like lighting a match to one's senses. Roxas couldn't even begin to describe what was actually happening in it, only the feeling of it. Unfortunately, it had happened while Sora was sleeping and therefore most likely to notice what was going on with Roxas.

"What the hell was  _that_?!" the brunet yelled. The memory had woken him up and he sounded pissed. He hadn't even bothered to keep his voice in his head.

 _"It was a memory,"_  Roxas snapped.

 _"Well, I could_ feel _it,"_  Sora responded, this time remembering not to actually  _talk_.

_"I didn't realize that you would."_

_"Just...whatever. Don't keep me awake or I'm coming in there and we can_ fight _over it."_

Sora normally didn't get pissed at his Nobody (seriously, how awesome is it to have an inner voice that actually talks back? It was like having a friend with you at all times), but when his sleep was interfered with... Sora enjoyed his sleep and got mad when he was woken up.

 _"Whatever. Not like you'd_ win _this time."_

_"Is that an invitation?"_

_"I don't know,_ is _it?"_

_"Stop taking this conversation in circles!"_

_"It's what I do best."_

_"I'm going back to sleep."_

_"Congratulations."_

**-x-x-x-x-x-**

A few days later, Naminé talked to Roxas about his memories.

"I can put them all together now."

"What?!" Roxas exclaimed.

Naminé looked absolutely horrible, actually. She was exhausted and she definitely looked it.

"I've gathered your memories together. It worked similarly, as they are all like links in a chain. I just need to add the link that ties them all together."

"Well, do it then! Please," he added as an afterthought.

"Roxas...do you understand the emotional strain that this is going to put on you? Not just you, but Sora as well. You have to tell him."

"What?"

"You have to tell Sora before you do this. I...I won't do it unless you do. I swear, I'll take them all apart and you'll be even more lost than before."

"...Fine. I'll tell him."

"Please don't take this lightly, Roxas. This is a  _year_  of memories, almost your entire time as a Nobody. Remembering all this  _will_  drain you, physically  _and_  emotionally."

"I understand. I just...I want my memory back."

"Just come find me when you're ready, alright?"

**-x-x-x-x-x-**

_"Sora? Can I talk to you?"_

Sora looked around the classroom, hoping that no one was paying attention to him. It seemed like the coast was clear.

_"I'm coming in, okay?"_

_"Yeah."_

It had been a little weird at first, but Sora had gotten used to going inside his own head. Usually he'd be on the round stained glass window in the dark with Roxas clad in either his Organization XIII or Twilight Town attire (the latter was normally if he had been talking to Naminé recently). If Sora either forgot to announce his present or Roxas didn't really feel like moving, he'd end up in the pure white bedroom that had been Roxas's during his stay in Organization XIII. Here he was always in the black robes, though sometimes those would be sitting on a chair and the blond would have just the black underclothes on.

Today, Sora found himself in the bedroom, with Roxas sitting calmly on the bed.

"Hey," Sora said in greeting. "What's up?"

"Naminé's reconstructing my memories," Roxas stated simply.

"Really? Wow, that's awesome!"

"Yeah. She's just about done now."

"Then what are you looking so down for?"

"Sora, I spent about a year in Organization XIII. That's a whole year of memories as one of the 'bad guys'. I have almost no idea what I did during that time. All I know is that I spent most of it with Axel and I left to find out why I could wield the Keyblade. Everything in between is nothing but a blur. All I've got are little snippets of memories."

"Oh."

"Naminé wants me to warn you that it's going to be draining to both of us. Physically for you and, well, emotionally for me."

Sora walked over to sit next to Roxas on the bed. "I want you to have your memory back. If I had lost mine...well, I had, I just don't remember it, I would want it back."

"You've still lost part of it."

"Good point. But Naminé filled me in on the important parts. So...I want you to have a chance to have yours. It's...well, it's just not right, what DiZ did. I didn't have a lot of  _good_  experiences with Nobodies, but you and Naminé are good. And Axel...I think he was good in the end. Without him I would probably  _still_  be fighting off all those Dusks."

"Thanks, Sora."

"Hey, what else do you think I'm here for?"

"Good point. You're not much use for anything else."

"Hey! I'm being all nice to you and you're just being mean to me!"

"Of course."

"Look, I have to run. Class is ending and Riku's been poking at me for the last couple minutes."

"I'll tell you when. It'll be later."

"Okay!"

**-x-x-x-x-x-**

"Hey...hey! Kairi! Wait up!" Sora yelled out.

Kairi was walking out of the school talking to Selphie, the brunette talking animatedly as she pointed to Tidus. She turned and noticed Sora and quickly finished her conversation with Selphie.

"Sora! I thought you had detention or something because you never met up with me after class."

"Uh, yeah, about that. Sorry," he said sheepishly. "I was talking to Roxas."

"Oh, okay. How is he?"

"Naminé's been chaining together his memories."

"No wonder she's so busy and tired these days. I wondered what she was doing."

"Yeah...well, Roxas wanted to talk to me about it. It's a whole years worth of memories and it'll be draining for us both."

Kairi looked at him worriedly. "Sora...are you both going to be okay?"

"Of course! Memories can't be  _that_  bad, can they?"

"I guess not. Are you going to...I don't know. Rest or something?"

"I hadn't really thought about it."

"I know! The three of us can go over to the island this evening. Riku and I'll watch over you and be...moral support?"

"That's a great idea. Thanks Kairi! I'm going to run home to drop my stuff off and tell my mom where I'm going. I'll meet you two there, okay?"

"Sure thing. See you there, Sora."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's that. I know I probably shouldn't be starting a new fic, but I wanted to. I haven't written for so long and now I'm full of ideas. Anyway, update schedule for this should be around once a week? I don't know. Check my profile for updates :D
> 
> If you like this at all, you'll review. Even just a short one brings a smile to my face and I love to hear about what I could improve and such. So...yes, that's all I have to say.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _Notes from Dec. 2018: I found another 10k words of this fic on an old external hard drive, so I'm posting a couple chapters from that. They're unedited and probably roughly written, but here they are!_

Riku was the last to arrive at the island.  He found Sora and Kairi sitting on Paopu Island, with Sora leaning against the tree and Kairi watching him fretfully.

"How's he doing?"

"I think Sora will be fine.  A bit tired, but none the worse for wear.  Roxas though...I'm worried for him. I know I only ever talked to  _ him _ once, but...he's a part of Sora and that makes him my friend.  And I care about my friends."

"Even if he was involved with Axel?" Riku question.

Kairi turned to look at him.  "What?"

"Roxas was involved with Axel somehow.  I don't know  _ exactly _ how, but they were close friends of some sorts."

"Close...friends?"

"I don't know  _ how _ close they were."

"I thought...well, DiZ said that Nobodies couldn't  _ feel _ ."

"DiZ was a highly prejudiced old man out for revenge."

"Riku?"

"I still feel horrible about  _ everything _ .  First I was under the control of a fucking  _ Heartless _ , and then I was part of a petty plan for revenge.  I've ruined people's  _ lives _ , Kairi, and that's just..."

Riku was surprised to find himself pulled into a hug by Kairi.

"Don't say that, Riku.  You're the harshest judge of yourself and you don't deserve that.  You need to be more forgiving of yourself. Hell, the rest of us have.  I don't blame you for anything and I know for sure that Sora doesn't either."

"Kairi...thanks."

"It's what friends do.  Now what's this about DiZ?"

"DiZ, rather, Ansem the Wise, had six apprentices when he studied the workings of the heart in Hollow Bastion.  Xehanort, Braig, Dilan, Even, Elaeus, and Ienzo. First Xehanort, with the other five following shortly thereafter, became obsessed with the darkness of the heart and were consumed by it and became Nobodies, making up the first six members of Organization XIII.  Xehanort's Heartless called himself Ansem, so his Nobody became Xemnas. DiZ never forgave his apprentices and in turn developed an extremely biased and prejudiced opinion of Nobodies in general. He refused to refer to them as anything but 'it' and 'worthless', believing them to be nothing more than mere 'tools of the world'."

Kairi merely stared in shock.  "Oh.  _ Oh _ .  No one ever told me any of that."

"DiZ was the one who decided that Nobodies, due to their lack of heart, are unable to feel.  Xemnas believed that as well, and the rest of the Organization blindly accepted that fact."

"Do you believe that?"

"I'm not sure.  I didn't spend much time with Nobodies besides Dusks, though I spent a good deal of time with Naminé in Castle Oblivion and I  _ did _ fight Roxas.  I briefly met Axel as well.  Well, from those experiences they were a bit emotional.  And Xemnas led the Organization in search of hearts. You need to be able to  _ feel _ to have a drive for something."

"Riku..."

"DiZ was too prejudiced to see Nobodies as anything but evil, dark beings."

"Then...what about Roxas and, uh, Axel?"

"I know you only met Axel when he kidnapped you, but he wasn't always like that.  When I met him, it was while Roxas was in Naminé's Twilight Town simulation. He just seemed so forlorn and lonely, especially when he realized that Roxas was not going to remember him."

_ "Kairi, can I talk to you?" _

_ "Sure, Naminé, one second." _

"Riku, Naminé wants to talk to me for a moment.  Would you watch Sora?"

"Of course."

Kairi concentrated for a moment before she could enter her mind.  She knew that Sora talked to Roxas frequently, but she just didn't do it as often.  But she eventually was able to and found herself sitting on a table in Naminé's room in Castle Oblivion.

She glanced around the room, searching for the blonde, before finding her curled up on the bed in the corner.

"Naminé!" she exclaimed, rushing over.  "Are you okay?"   
  
Naminé pulled herself up carefully into a sitting position.  "Yeah...just a little tired."

"You look exhausted!"

And indeed she did.  Kairi had never seen the blonde girl look this horrible.  Naminé was even paler than normal and her eyes looked bloodshot from lack of sleep.

"I've been better, but I'll be okay."

"You've been keeping it from me!  It's okay to share some of your exhaustion with me.  I can just take a nap during a study hall or something."

"I didn't want to burden you.  It was a favor I was doing for Roxas and I didn't think it would be fair to share it with you without discussing it with you first."   
  
"Naminé...we're one in the same.  You can share with me, okay?"

"Okay."

"What did you want to talk to me about?"

"When Sora wakes up...please tell him to talk to Roxas.  He's going to need it. I put these memories together. I know what's in them.  I doubt that Roxas is sharing them with Sora right now, but just...please. Roxas is going to need some sort of moral support."

"I promise I will."

"Thanks, Kairi."

"Are you sure you're okay?"   
  
"Yes.  Don't worry about it too much, okay?"   
  
"I'm going to go.  You know you can always talk to me, right?"

Kairi was about to go, when Naminé reached out and grabbed her wrist.

"Can I...can I talk to Riku for a moment?"

"Um, sure.  How...?"

"I'm just going to borrow your body for a moment."

"Okay!  We do share anyway :D"

Kairi's eyes fluttered open.

"Riku?"

"Naminé?!"

"Yeah, I'm just borrowing Kairi's body for a moment.  I wanted to talk to you."

"Okay.  How are you?"

"Tired.  Look, Sora's going to be tired and confused from this whole ordeal, Roxas is going to be emotionally drained, and Kairi...I don't think I can keep the exhaustion away from her any long.  You're going to need to take care of them for a little."

"Of course.  Is that all?"

"Take special care of Kairi, please.  Sora's going to be so distracted with Roxas and Kairi's still not completely better from everything.  She seems like it, but she's really, really not."

"Naminé...thanks for telling me.  She's just gotten back into everything so well that I thought that she was okay..."

"Don't worry about it too much.  I don't think even  _ she _ realizes it that much."

Naminé's eyes slid shut and then snapped right back open.  "Tell her I'm sorry for not being able to keep the sleep from her."  Her eyes once again slid shut.

This time when her eyes opened, it was Kairi in control again.

"Riku?" she asked sleepily.  "I'm just...so tired..."

"Shh...don't worry about it.  Just get some sleep, okay? I'll watch over you and Sora."

"Thanks..."

**-x-x-x-x-x-**   
  


It was late when Sora woke up.  He still felt really tired (drained of energy, really) but he had enough energy to wake up.  Kairi was napping against Riku, who was leaning against the tree and staring off into the distance.

"Hey," Sora said, yawning.  "Riku, nice to see you."

"How are you feeling?"   
  
"Tired.  But other than that, I'm okay."

"Good.  You're going to need to talk to Roxas, you know."

"Yeah, I had thought I should."

"Did he...did you see  _ any _ of his memories?"

"Not a one.  Roxas has become really secretive these days.  He doesn't talk about  _ any _ of his memories anymore, except that he wants to have them all back."

"Well, he does now."

"I know."

"You can go talk to him  _ now _ , you know.  I don't mind watching over you two for a bit longer."

"But, Riku...you've been sitting here all evening!  I feel bad."

"Sora, if it weren't for me, Roxas would have never  _ lost _ his memories in the first place.  I don't mind sitting here."

"If you say so..."

"And I do.  Go ahead and talk to him."

_ "Roxas, I'm coming in, okay?" _

All he got was a slight sense of affirmation in reply.

Sora had to adjust himself to where he ended up in his head this time.  He'd  _ been _ here before, just not in his head.  He was in one of the final rooms he had been in at Xemnas's castle,  _ Proof of Existence _ .  Sora remembered being interested in it, as it was different than the others.  It had reminded him of a graveyard when he had first been there, but it wasn't until Riku explained it to him that he fully understood it.

Roxas was over to one side, attired in his Organization outfit.  Today the hood on the coat was up, signaling that he really didn't want to talk.  But Sora wasn't one to listen to this sort of subtle hint. He walked over to the blond and placed a hand on his shoulder, prepared to say something.

Instead he got a flash of memory.  Bright red hair, iridescent, almost  _ glowing _ green eyes, a gasped out name.

Sora immediately withdrew his hand, looking questionably at the other boy.

"Roxas?"

"...yeah?"

"Are you okay?"

Sora expected him to answer in the affirmative, as Roxas  _ never _ wanted to show many signs of weakness.

"No."

Roxas looked as though he would collapse any moment.  Sora had never seen him like this before.

"We were...fuck...were...fucking  _ lovers _ !  Fucking...why didn't anyone  _ tell _ me?!"  And with this, Roxas  _ did _ collapse, crying as he had his forehead pressed against the tombstone of the proof he was in front of.  Sora was immediately at his side, not exactly sure what to do. He glanced down and saw the glowing red weapon that signified whose proof it was.  A chakram...Axel.

The two sat there for...hell, Sora didn't know.  But it was awhile. Roxas just needed to let it all out and Sora tried to be as comforting as possible.

After awhile, Roxas was sitting up, leaning against the tombstone.

"I don't see why Xemnas made such a big deal about having hearts.  Now that I have one, I'd rather I didn't. I  _ miss _ him like hell, Sora, and it hurts."

"That's just part of everything.  You can feel joy and happiness and love and  _ everything _ now!"

"Yeah...and loneliness, too."

Roxas looked more than a little unhappy.  Sora didn't even know what could help that.  He didn't want the blond to be so sad, but he couldn't think of anything to help.

"Well...you know, I was separated from my friends for almost two years.  I missed them so much."

"But you found them."

"Yeah, I did!"  Sora looked thrilled at this.

Roxas merely shook his head.  "Your friends are  _ alive _ , Sora."

"Yeah, they- oh.  Yeah."

Roxas was leaning back against the tombstone still, staring at the ceiling and looking basically desolate.

Sora couldn't even  _ imagine _ how he'd feel if he were in Roxas's place.  As much as everyone had told them that they were similar, the two were actually quite different.

"We could...um.  I know! Nobodies aren't even really  _ alive _ in the first place, right?  So therefore they can't really  _ die _ ."

"They fade back into darkness."

"Then we'll go  _ find _ him!"

"...what?"

"We'll go find Axel!  Okay?"

"Sora...I hate to dash your hopes, but I don't think that's even possible."

"Why not?  Usually when you lose your heart, that's it; you're a Heartless and you don't come back.  But Kairi and I  _ both _ lost ours and I'm here talking to you."

"Kairi's a Princess of Heart and you're the Keyblade Master.  You're both very special exceptions."

"And so are  _ you _ !  How many Nobodies get to actually  _ meet _ their Others?  And you're a Keyblade master as well!  So you can do anything you think you can!  And Riku, Kairi, and I would help you. I mean, I'd obviously have to, but, uh, yeah."

"Are you serious?"

"Yep!  So what do you think?"

Roxas seemed to be thinking it over.  "We need to get to Castle Oblivion."

"Huh?"

"The majority of the library was moved there, as the only members who used it were there.  After they were defeated, there was never a real reason to move it back to The World That Never Was.  If there's any sort of information on how to rescue a Nobody from the dark, it would be there."

"Then let's go!"

"Just like that?"

"Why wait?  The sooner we get started the sooner we can succeed!  Besides, I want to travel again! It's not like I'm  _ tired _ of the island or anything, but it'd be nice to get off of it for a little."

"You just don't want to do your homework."

"Well, maybe just a little...Hey!  You're being mean to me again! You must be feeling better."

"A bit.  Your enthusiasm is contagious."

"Yes!"  Sora then remembered something.  "How  _ are _ we going to get off of here anyway?"

"You didn't even think of that?  Well, I'm going to need to borrow your body..."


	3. Chapter 3

Riku noticed Sora waking up again.

"So did you talk to Roxas?"

"Yeah, he talked to me."

"Roxas?"

"We're going on another adventure.  Care to join?"

Riku was a little confused, but was about to respond when Kairi began to stir beside him.

"Huh...what's going on?" she asked, brushing the sleep from her eyes.

"We're going to look for Axel."

"Roxas?"

"Yes.  Sora's lending me his body for a little."

"Okay," Riku said suddenly.  "I'll come with you.  _ Someone _ needs to stop you and Sora from doing anything too ridiculous."

"Hey!  Would one of you  _ please _ explain what's going on here?"

Roxas glanced at her.  "We're going on another adventure," he said simply.  "Sora suggested it."

"Well, I'm not letting you guys leave without me this time.  I'm coming too!"

"How exactly do you plan to get off of here?  In case you didn't notice, Mickey and the others took the only Gummi Ship off this place."

"I'm a Nobody.  I reside in darkness, remember?  I can still open portals," Roxas replied.

_ "Damn it Sora...your light is interfering." _

_ "I'm sorry.  What's going to happen then?" _

_ "I can't pinpoint an  _ exact _ location.  I hope you don't mind walking a little, because I know we're going to land a bit off target." _

_ "That's fine." _

Roxas reached out, opening a portal.  As he began to step through, he turned slightly and called out "Are you two coming or what?"

Riku pulled Kairi up and they followed him through, set to begin a whole new kind of adventure.

**-x-x-x-x-x-**

They landed in the grass to the side of a long, twisting path.  Sora immediately recognized it. What he  _ didn't _ recognize was the castle looming in the distance.

_ "That's Castle Oblivion," _ Roxas supplied helpfully.

_ "Oh.  It looks a little familiar." _

_ "You  _ were _ there.  You just don't remember it." _

_ "Oh yeah." _

"Where are we?" Kairi asked.

"Well, that's Castle Oblivion and that's where we're heading.  I think it's a part of The End of the World...I don't know for sure."

"Sora, you're you again!"

"Yeah, Roxas just needed to get us here."

_ "That is  _ not _ all I'm good for!" _

_ "Hey!  You've been mean to me before!  It's  _ my _ turn now." _

"So we're going there?"

"Yep."

"Do you even have a plan?" Riku asked.

"Of course!  We're going to find the library and read.  Lots and lots of reading. There has to be  _ some _ way to bring a Nobody back from darkness."

"So Roxas was serious when he said we'd be looking for Axel."

"Yeah...I don't know how much he'd want me to share though..."

_ "I don't care.  It's not like I'm hiding anything." _

_ "I don't want to just announce it.  It'd be awkward." _

Sora could have  _ sworn _ that Roxas smirked at him.

"We'll just head onward then."

**-x-x-x-x-x-**

Kairi was trailing behind Riku and Sora, who were engaged in a conversation that involved lots of pointing and jumping around on Sora's part, and he even at one point appeared to be imitating someone playing guitar.  Sometimes she wondered about him.

_ "Naminé?" _

She frowned when she didn't hear a reply from the blonde.

_ "Are you okay?  Naminé?" _

_ "...Yeah.  I've been better, but I'm getting better now." _

_ "Have you talked to Roxas?" _

_ "Not since I finished chaining his memories.  Why?" _

_ "Well...we're off searching for Axel now." _

_ "What?  What do you mean?" _

_ "We're headed to Castle Oblivion to search the library for books about rescuing Nobodies from darkness." _

_ "That  _ would _ be the best place to start..." _

"Kairi?  You okay?"  Riku was talking to her.

_ "Oh, I'll talk to you later.  Riku wants me." _

_ "Ta." _

"Yeah, just still a little tired.  How are  _ you _ ?"

"I'm okay.  And I meant how's  _ everything _ going?"   
  
"What do you mean?"

"You've barely talked about anything that went on while we were gone.  I'm worried about you."

"Ah, it's nothing, really.  I'm just-"

"Guys!   _ Guys! _  We're almost there!  It's  _ huge _ !" Sora exclaimed.

"We can talk later, okay?" Riku said.

**-x-x-x-x-x-**

Sora felt the oddest sense of familiarity when he pushed open the doors to Castle Oblivion.  It was different than when he had arrived in Twilight Town, as that was Roxas remembering. This was like a stirring of memory deep inside his heart.

_ "It's the unchained memories that reside deep within your heart." _

_ "Naminé?" _

_ "It's nice to talk to you again, Sora.  Usually I just talk to Roxas, but he's still going over his memories, so I thought I'd see how you were." _

_ "I'm fine, but how are you?  Kairi said that you were really drained from helping Roxas with his memories." _

_ "I've definitely been better, but Kairi's been taking some of the exhaustion, and the deep sleep she was in while you and Roxas talked yesterday really helped." _

_ "Well that's good.  I don't want to drain you anymore or anything, but, uh...is it at all possible that I could remember my time here?  I mean...I  _ know _ you helped me out and all, but it still feels like I've only ever met you with Kairi." _

_ "I've told you before Sora; the time you spent in Castle Oblivion was spent having your memories unchained.  To remember that time I'd have to unchain your  _ current _ memories.  You had to choose between your real memories and the ones you made here." _

_ "You're sure?" _

_ "Positive.  But I can continue to tell you about it.  And the familiarity of the castle to you is proof that you may be able to remember bits on your own." _

_ "Thanks, Naminé.  I'll keep that in mind." _

_ "If you're looking for the library, you're going to need help." _

_ "What?" _

_ "You've never been there, even when you were here before.  You'll never find it on your own, nor will you be able to get into it." _

_ "What do you mean I won't be able to get into on my own?" _

_ "This castle was built by Nobodies  _ for _ Nobodies, meant to confuse you and destroy your memories.  Marluxia, Larxene, Vexen, Lexaeus, and Zexion created it to suit  _ them _ , and that involved their method of transportation." _

_ "Ah.  So, um, Roxas?  Are you around?" _

_ "Yeah." _

_ "You might need to help get us there." _ __   
_   
_ __ "Sure.  Mind if I take control then?"

_ "Go for it." _

"I'm going to get us there now."

"Roxas?"

"This castle was made for Nobodies.  You wouldn't be able to get into most of the rooms without me," he answered, creating a portal for them to walk through.  "Come on."

**-x-x-x-x-x-**

The library was  _ huge _ and full of many,  _ many _ books.  Sora looked at it in awe.

_ "Roxas...how are we  _ ever _ going to look through all of these?" _

_ "They're probably organized by subject." _

_ "Oh.  Uh. Is there anyway to um...separate?  It might go quicker that way..." _

_ "Probably.  I've done it before, so I'll see if I can do it again..." _

Sora looked at the slightly transparent blond in front of him.

"Hm, apparently I still can.  I'm going to go look in that section," Roxas said.

Riku was looking over at Sora questionably.

"We thought it would be faster this way," Sora said by way of explanation.

"He can still come out?"

"I guess so."

'Two people don't belong in one body,' Riku thought to himself.  'Sora and Roxas have it tough.'

**-x-x-x-x-x-**

Hours later, they had very little success.  Roxas was floating up by one of the top shelves, flipping through a thin brown book.  He was beginning to feel discouraged.

"You're never going to find anything that way."

Roxas almost fell out of the air in shock.  He spun around to look at Zexion –  _ Zexion _ – perched on a shelf across the aisle.

"Uh, hi?"

"I know we barely met, but I'm willing to help you.  You're not the only one who's looking for a friend."

Roxas couldn't help but stare at the lilac-haired boy.  "How are you here? Axel told me that he was the only survivor..."

Zexion gave a slight glare.  "He would probably know. He was the one who sent the Riku Replica on me.  But I got away –  _ barely  _ – and got out of the general area to recover."

"But...your proof..."

"You're really easily confused, aren't you?"

"Hey!  I'm sorry that the last I checked  _ I _ was the only one left from the Organization.  Everyone else's proof was red or smashed."

"Mine too?"

"Yeah.  Smashed beyond recognition."

"Hmph, I can't believe he actually did it."

"What?"

"Never mind, it's not important.  Besides, you're one to talk. You don't even have your own body anymore."

"Don't remind me," Roxas said glumly.  "Usually I'm stuck in Sora's head. Anyway, why are you here?"

"Excuse me?  I  _ live _ here."

"Oh.  Alone?"

"As you so nicely put it, everyone else is  _ gone _ .  I'm going to tell you something before you spend time searching this entire library: there are only one or two books in this castle that are of any help to you."

Roxas brightened at this.  "So it  _ is _ possible to bring a Nobody back from darkness?"

"I never said that.  But yes, in  _ theory _ it is."  Zexion jumped down from the shelf, landing lightly on his feet.  "Do you want these books or not?" he asked, looking up at Roxas.

"Yes!" he replied, joining him on the ground.

"Here," Zexion said, handing him a thick black volume and a notebook.

Roxas looked at the notebook questionably, his eyes landing on the name printed clearly on the upper left corner of the cover.   _ Ienzo _ .

"This was yours."

"I studied the workings of the heart and darkness for years as Ansem's apprentice.  Why not share? I don't have much more use for it anyway."

"Oh.  Okay."

"You still look confused."

"Why are you helping me?  Didn't you almost get destroyed because of Axel?"

Zexion sighed.  "That's in the past.  But that's not the only reason that I'm helping.  I don't know how much Axel told you about the other members, but I  _ did _ have a friend among them and I'd like to see him again."

"Demyx," Roxas stated simply, causing Zexion to stop walking and turn to look at him.

"Yes."

"That's where he was always going, then?  Axel and I would always question him about it, but we never managed to get it out of him."

"He visited me a lot, yes.  I told him he shouldn't, but he never got caught or anything."

"Xemnas ignored him most of the time."

"He always did consider him incompetent, which is why I still can't understand why Xemnas thought it was a good idea to send Demyx after Sora."

"Personally, I think he went a bit crazy at the end."

"He was  _ always _ crazy.  Even before when he was Xehanort.  Ansem the Wise found him and took him in, memories wiped completely blank and yet incredibly powerful.  I  _ never _ thought that was a good idea, but I was the youngest and no one really listened to me much.  So I ended up going along with their studies and I pushed the studying of the darkness of the heart."  Zexion sighed. "And now we're Nobodies and I'm the only one of the original six left."

"At least you have a body of your own."

"At least  _ you _ have a heart."

"The trade-off's not so great.  Loneliness hurts like a bitch."

"I know.  I...Demyx taught me that you don't need a heart to feel."

"And you call yourself one of the original six...pshaw."

"You're the one trying to rescue a Nobody from darkness when you have no body of your own.  If you don't want my help..."

"No, I do!  ...I just have no idea where to start."

"That's what I'm here for," Zexion said, sitting in one of two chairs they were standing by.  "Are you going to sit down?"


	4. Chapter 4

Riku, on the other hand, was searching for information of a different kind.  He was genuinely worried for Sora and Roxas. The two were so very different and yet were sharing one body.  It was unhealthy and if something wasn't done, it would probably end badly.

He hadn't found much of anything to help.

Sure, he'd found volumes and volumes on the creation of Nobodies, the lives of Nobodies, and the eventual destruction of a Nobodies, but not a thing on  _ creating _ a Nobody without turning his or her other into a Heartless.

Riku had almost given up when he found a notebook slipped in between two larger books.  Curious, he flipped it open, briefly glancing at its author. He paused. Written in a tight, messy scrawl was  _ Even _ .

Marvelous.

But, he remembered, Vexen  _ had _ been the one to create the Repliku, so he might have some research or something on other sorts of cloning.  So Riku sat down to read through a notebook of studies on cloning, most of which made absolutely no sense to him.  He  _ was _ only seventeen.

By the time he was nearing the end of the notebook, Riku had practically given up.  The whole thing had been about cloning hearts and eventually Heartless. There had been a few added notes from Elaeus and Ienzo, including a stick figure drawing of Ansem the Wise during a lecture done by Ienzo, with commentary from Even.  After spending as much time as he had with DiZ, Riku had to admit that it was a pretty accurate depiction.

It still wasn't very helpful.  He was now at the last page and was prepared to shut it, when he noticed a note scrawled in the corner.

_ Cloning – Nobodies – with and without hearts – bodies – IZ38 _

That would be a lot more helpful if he knew what  _ IZ38 _ stood for.  It couldn't hurt to ask, though.

"Does anyone know what  _ IZ38 _ is?" Riku called out.

"I'm using it!" Roxas replied.

Well,  _ that _ was helpful.  Now he just needed to find Roxas.

"Where are you?" Riku asked.

"In the library of Castle Oblivion," Roxas answered sarcastically.

"You don't have to be a little bitch about it."  Well, at least he would be able to follow Roxas's voice.

"You didn't have to allow DiZ to fuck up my life."

"Oh, and it was a party for me."

Riku rounded the corner to find Roxas sitting at a table poring over a notebook with a thick volume sitting on the table as well.

"It's right there," someone else said.

Riku turned to look at the lilac-haired Nobody sitting in the other chair.

"Zexion?"

"The one and only."

"Didn't you  _ die _ ?"

"A bit blunt, aren't we?  And no, I didn't. Your replica almost destroyed me, but I escaped and recovered," Zexion replied.  "Do you want to use that book or not?"

"I do!"

"It's the big one.  You'll find that  _ IZ38 _ stands for a section of it."

"Thanks."

Riku grabbed the book from the table and sat on a nearby couch, looking in the index at the beginning to find the section that he was looking for.  A closer look at the book led to the discovery that it was a compilation of the finding's of Ansem the Wise's apprentices. He shook his head. He had to come to terms with this being their library, so of course their books would be in it.

__ Index  
__ Xehanort – XE  
__ Braig – BR  
__ Dilan – DL  
__ Even – EV  
_ Elaeus – EL  
_ __ Ienzo – IZ

Riku immediately flipped to the  _ IZ _ section, not really paying attention to its author.  He'd gotten to the tenth page before it clicked.

"You wrote this!" he exclaimed, gesturing at Zexion.

"Yes I did.  Is that a problem?" Zexion replied.

Riku glared slightly.  "You could have told me that."

"Now why would I do that?  If my memory serves me correctly, the last time I saw you, you were trying to defeat me.  You'll have to forgive me for being hostile."

"You were taunting me."

"Part of the job."

Riku decided to go back to the book, turning to page 38 (ahaha IZ38, get it?), and reading on.  There was just one problem though.

None of it made sense.

But he was not one to ask for help.  Riku would rather read over the same sentence twenty times than ask someone to explain it to him.

_ Nobodies are interesting creatures.  They almost defy all logic, as they should not truly exist.  Heartless are created from the darkness in one's heart and are always desperately searching and then stealing the hearts of others.  But Nobodies have  _ half _ a heart, as they are literally half of the person they were created from.  They are the leftovers and thusly, should not really exist. But they  _ do _ , and they are searching for hearts as well, just like their corresponding Heartless.  The difference is that they are searching for  _ their _ heart, the half that they are missing. _

_ Xehanort doesn't believe that Nobodies have even half a heart, claiming it to be impossible.  But my studies show otherwise. When two Nobodies are in close contact with each other for an extended period of time, they begin to work together as a team.  Their Heartless counterparts do nothing of the sort; they work mindlessly for their own individual goal. _

_ It's quite possible that Nobodies behave this way due to the two halves of their hearts reacting to form a whole and in turn allowing them to  _ feel _ for the other Nobody.  However, when I presented my findings on the subject, my colleagues did not share my opinion.  Dilan and Braig laughed, calling it the naivety of youth, while Even and Elaeus refrained from saying anything at all.  Xehanort told me to discontinue these studies, as they are of no profit to anything. _

_ Still, I wish to see how much a heart truly affects Nobodies.  My colleagues are too focused on the Heartless to pay any attention to their cast-offs, and I wish to delve deeper into the knowledge of them.  They interest me greatly and they  _ must _ have some sort of importance. _

_ Some days later: _

_ Intrigued by Even's cloning of Heartless, I decided to see if it was possible to clone Nobodies as well.  Heartless are mere darkness and, as the name obviously suggests, lack hearts. There is always darkness to create more.  But though Nobodies reside in darkness, they are not necessarily  _ made _ of it.  This, coupled with their possession of half their original heart (I do not believe Xehanort when he says that they lack hearts; their modes of heart-hunting and simple behaviors prove otherwise), should make cloning a Nobody quite difficult. _

_ I borrowed some of Even's notes on cloning and have created my own small lab dedicated to it.  So far, cloning Nobodies has proved to be just as difficult as I expected it to be. I began by trying to clone one just as I would a Heartless.  This resulted in a clone of the Nobody's Heartless, which, while being interesting, is not what I am aiming for. _

_ To account for the heart, I had to adjust some of the perimeters.  I am not certain if it is even possible to clone a heart, but I'll make that discovery part of this experiment as well. _

_ My first attempts at cloning the heart of a Nobody have proved disastrous.  The first few trials have left the Nobodies completely destroyed or in pieces.  I think that this is due to having their heart-half tampered with. I have discovered that, as the heart of a Nobody is not whole, it is weaker than a regular heart.  The pressure of duplicating that heart is too overwhelming for it to bear and thus it is destroyed in the cloning process. If I could find a way to either strengthen the heart or minimize the amount of stress put on it, the cloning may be more successful... _

Riku dropped his head onto the book in frustration.  This was not going to be easy. But he was  _ not _ going to ask for help.  He glanced over at Roxas and Zexion.  The blond was still engrossed in the notebook and Zexion was prodding at a miniature Dusk.  Riku had to refrain from laughing when it blew up in the lilac haired boy's face.

Roxas raised his eyes from the notebook at the sound of the exploding Dusk.

"I don't think that quite worked," he said sarcastically.

"No, you think?  I thought that's what I was aiming for," Zexion replied.

Riku shook his head and returned to reading the book, this time more determined than ever to find something,  _ anything _ that would help.

_ Cloning the heart is proving to be near impossible.  Even a complete heart cannot last under the strains of cloning, much less half of one.  I have instead begun to branch off into a different kind of Nobody cloning. _

_ If I could clone just the  _ body _ of the Nobody and then move the half-heart and consciousness of the original into it...this would make them almost impossible to truly destroy or defeat.  When a Nobody is defeated, it is no longer strong enough to maintain its form and it merely fades into the darkness that it is made of. If it is possible to recreate their bodies, there is no limit to how long Nobodies can exist, as long as the consciousness can be recovered. _

_ Some days later... _

_ Creating just the body of a Nobody has proven to be no easier than cloning its heart.  I just cannot get the exact parameters correct, and this has resulted in many, many failed attempts.  Recreating something that resides in darkness though is made of nothingness is not an easy task. _

_ Even has called it impossible and a waste of his cloning notes, but he made a note of it in his journal anyway.  Elaeus didn't have much to say (as per usual), though he warned me against sharing these studies with Xehanort. Braig laughed, calling it all foolishness.  I have not spoken to Dilan, as he has been out with Xehanort surveying for the heart of this world. _

_ Today, Xehanort returned with a young man named Aïs, who is set to be another of our helpers in the studies of darkness.  I don't trust him any more than I do Xehanort, which is not very much these days. I fear that he has led us too deep into the study of the darkness of the heart.  I have noticed slight changes in our personalities and appearances and they are growing with each passing day. _

_ Xehanort, Braig, and Dilan are gone.  They have surrendered themselves to the darkness in their hearts and have become nothing more than mere cast offs- Nobodies.  Xehanort's Heartless has driven Ansem the Wise into hiding and has stolen his name. He is leading this world into darkness. _

_ I fear for the inevitable fall of Hollow Bastion.  Yes, Xehanort's Heartless has renamed this world, claiming Radiant Garden to be an inappropriate name for a world that shall be ruled by darkness. _

_ I have not seen Even today and that worries me.  I know that Elaeus has taken his family into hiding, but promised to return later.  I am in our basement study alone, despite the danger that I myself warned everyone of.  I know better than to go anywhere without someone, but I couldn't find anyone. _

The book ended there, save for an index in the back.  Riku frowned. There was nothing of any use to him. He was about to close the book when he spotted a glowing lilac blue circle at the bottom of the page.  Curious, he poked it and was surprised to find himself watching a memory.

_ Ienzo was frantically looking through his notes and the notes of his colleagues, searching for anything that might help reverse the descent of darkness on Hollow Bastion.  He looked frustrated and stressed. _

_ "Ienzo," a voice stated. _

_ The lilac haired young man spun to look in the direction of the voice.  He was met with a blue haired man. _

_ "Isa," he growled.  "What are you doing here?" _

_ "Collecting you," he said smoothly.  "Xemnas has prevented me from surrendering to the darkness in my heart until all of his other apprentices have done the same.  That leaves  _ you _." _

_ "What if I don't want to?" _

_ "Silly boy, you would have never partaken in any of this if you hadn't wanted to eventually be a part of it.  You are  _ needed _." _

_ "You'll have to take me by force," Ienzo replied. _

_ "But where would the fun be in that?  If you do not willingly allow yourself to become one with darkness, then your Nobody will be nothing more than a mere Dusk.  And we wouldn't want that, now would we? All your lovely research would be for naught." _

_ "What do you mean?" _

_ "Xemnas is in control of all Nobodies now!  He wants to continue his research, though with much more power and on a broader scale.  But he needs  _ your _ research.  All that work you've done on Nobodies is priceless information." _

_ "Then why not destroy me and simply take it?" _

_ "Because it's not finished yet.  You must continue it as a member of his Organization.  If you do not become a Nobody out of your own free will, then you are worthless and your research shall be lost.  Join us, Ienzo, and cast off your pitiful mortal bindings!" _

_ Ienzo appeared to be considering this. _

_ "I want to continue my research," he said finally.  "But I will not do it to help  _ you _.  I don't want to be in your presence." _

_ At this point, darkness was enveloping the young researcher.  "And remember...I will  _ always _ be above you.  I came first," Ienzo stated.  "Six comes before seven." _

_ And with that, he was completely covered in the dark.  As it faded, Isa was left glaring at the shadow Heartless that had been left behind.  His eyes flashed angrily as he destroyed it and allowed himself to be taken by the darkness as well. _

Riku's eyes snapped open to find Roxas and Zexion staring down at him.

"Ugh...I feel like I was just pelted in the head with rocks," Riku said, groaning.

"Prodding around in other people's memories can do that to you," Zexion replied.

"Well, I wasn't planning on it.  I was just curious," Riku snapped.  "Maybe you shouldn't just leave those things sitting around in books.

"I suppose I could have warned you about that.  But I didn't feel like it."

"Whatever."

Roxas was done watching the two argue, so he went back to his notebook.  Ah, silly Roxas. They will never be done arguing.

Riku was torn between trying to figure things out on his own and swallowing his pride and asking Zexion.

Eventually, his worry for Sora won.

"Can I ask you something?"

Zexion looked up, mildly surprised.  "I suppose."

"Did you ever finish your research?"

"Research is  _ never _ finished."

"I guess what I mean is...did you ever succeed in cloning Nobodies?"

"Yes," Zexion replied.  "But without hearts. The clones only  _ look _ like their originals.  Behavior-wise, they act like Heartless.  So they are not perfect clones."

Riku flipped the book open again, pointing at the passage in particular that he wanted to discuss.

_ If I could clone just the  _ body _ of the Nobody and then move the half-heart and consciousness of the original into it...this would make them almost impossible to truly destroy or defeat.  When a Nobody is defeated, it is no longer strong enough to maintain its form and it merely fades into the darkness that it is made of. If it is possible to recreate their bodies, there is no limit to how long Nobodies can exist, as long as the consciousness can be recovered. _

"How about that?"

Zexion sat down next to Riku on the couch to get a better look at the page.  "Just who exactly are you trying to save?"

Riku wasn't expecting that question.  "What?"

"In reference to this passage, one would need the original Nobody to complete the cloning.  In case you've forgotten, they're currently in darkness." Zexion paused. "Unless you're not working on that topic?"

"You see everything, don't you?"

"It's part of the job description."

"As you've figured out already, no, I am not currently working on the 'rescue Axel from darkness' plan.  In case  _ you _ haven't noticed, Roxas currently lives in Sora's head.  It's not good for  _ either _ of them and it can't end well."

"So you wanted to see if it was possible to create a body for him."

"Exactly."

"Hmm."

"Well, is it?"

"Probably," Zexion finally said.  "But I honestly never even thought about it before now.  Usually Nobodies don't return to their Others."

"Will you see if you can do it?"

"I guess I  _ might _ .  I really don't have much of a reason to help you."

"May I add that if this works, not only can we find Axel but Demyx as well?" Roxas said, intruding on their conversation.  "And, quite frankly, I'm tired of being in Sora's head."

Riku resisted the urge to laugh at Zexion.  "You and  _ Demyx _ ?" he asked incredulously.

"Is that a problem?" Zexion snapped.

"Sorry, I just assumed he would have annoyed you."

"The entire  _ Organization _ annoyed me.  Xemnas was insane, Xigbar and Xaldin were spectacularly violent and dangerous (especially together), Vexen became crazier and crazier as the years went on, Lexeaus eventually became silent and violent, Saïx was Xemnas's  _ bitch _ among other things, Axel was an absolute bastard-"

"Hey!" Roxas interrupted.

"Well, he was."

Roxas pouted.

"Anyway, where was I?  Oh, yes. Luxord was obsessed with card games, Marluxia was obsessed with taking control of the Organization, Larxene was sadistic, and well, I never really knew Roxas.  Demyx was...an annoyance, but he was an endearing annoyance. Mind you, it took a few years before I'd even  _ speak  _ to him and acknowledge his presence, but he was...different."

"He never really fit in," Roxas added helpfully.

"And somehow that meant 'hay, let's have sex!!!' to you?" Riku replied sarcastically.

"You're a little bitch, you know that?" Roxas said, rolling his eyes.

"And you're not?"

"Excuse me,  _ someone _ was trying to erase my memories and return me to my Other so that I'd no longer  _ exist _ ."

"Sorry,  _ I _ was a little pissed because you  _ kicked my ass _ .  Oh, and you were basically ruining everything Sora had fought for."

"Oh yeah, I  _ did _ kick your ass that first time.  I forgot that you had to resort to the powers of darkness to actually  _ beat _ me.  And I am  _ so sorry _ for messing up all the work your  _ boyfriend _ did, what with falling asleep in a castle and all."

"My  _ what _ ?!"

"You heard me alright.  You know you practically  _ throw _ yourself on poor, naïve, little Sora."

Riku would probably have punched the blond Nobody if he didn't think that it would probably affect Sora too.

Zexion had had enough of the two's play bickering.

"Alright you two, do you want my help or not?"

The two stopped to look at him.  "Yes!" they said in unison.

"Then stop arguing.  I'm not going to baby sit five-year-olds again; I spent nine years doing that in the Organization."

Riku snickered.

" _ Anyway _ , you're just lucky that I'll be getting something out of this, or there'd be no reason for me to help you.  But before we start anything else, we're going to need to talk to Sora."

"Why?" Roxas asked.

"In case you've  _ forgotten _ , you're a part of him.  You need to talk to him about this."

"Oh, you just sound like Naminé."

Zexion raised an eyebrow in question.

"She told me the same sort of thing when she was working to restore my memories.  Blah, blah, I'm a part of Sora, I  _ know _ .  I'll go find him then," Roxas said, stalking off.

"I take it that's a touchy subject?" Zexion asked once the blond was out of sight.

"Oh yeah," Riku replied.

"Then I'm going to work on this until all hell breaks loose."

"Do you have what you need?"

Zexion turned around, smirking.  Riku wasn't sure how he felt about that look.

"I shape-shift.  I could create an entire world out of a pencil."

Riku understood now why Zexion had never fought as himself.  It would have been Riku's murder. He made a mental note to not piss Zexion off.


	5. Chapter 5

Sora was actually having a good time.  He'd found all sorts of awesome books and, despite being completely and totally distracted from his actual  _ goal _ , he was enjoying reading them.  Who knew Nobodies actually had this sort of stuff?

It had been way awkward earlier when Kairi had found the trashy romance novels.  They had originally assumed that they belonged to Larxene (since she was the only girl in the Organization, that would make sense), but the two were instead highly disturbed to find a very  _ different _ name written inside the books.

_ Marluxia _ was written in most of them, with  _ Alumair  _ in some of the older-looking ones.

"Uh.  Yeah, I'm just going to go put these back where I found them," Kairi had said, snatching the box of books off of the table and shoving it back in a corner in horror.

Kairi returned shortly, plopping down in the chair across the table from Sora.  "Well, at least they got Naminé to laugh."

"What?" Sora questioned.

"She's been silent since we arrived.  I thought it was because she was tired, but she just didn't want to talk."

"Maybe she just doesn't like it here," Sora said simply.  "Bad memories and all that."

Kairi looked ready to say something, but shut her mouth to think.  "Oh, I guess that would make sense."

Then Roxas came wandering in and yay everything changes.

"Sora, can I talk to you about something?" the blond asked.

"Of course!  But first I need to find out if Marla ends up with Sir Byron or not," Sora replied, gesturing to the book that he was reading.

"Sora!  Are you reading Marluxia's trashy romance novels?  I thought we put those away!"

Roxas snickered at this.  "I guess Axel wasn't kidding when he told me Marluxia horror stories."

"I'm just...uh, looking at them!  For CLUES! Because...yeah, they might be important!" Sora exclaimed, trying to defend himself.

" _ Sure _ , Sora, sure.  And I'm a fairy princess," Roxas replied sarcastically.

"What did you want to talk to me about?" Sora asked, changing topics.

"Ah, it's kind of a long story," he said.  "First of all, there's one more member of the Organization left."

"What?  How is that possible?" Sora questioned.  "And who is it?"

"Zexion.  He escaped the Riku replica and –snicker- Demyx helped him recover," Roxas said before continuing on.  If he waited too long for the information to sink into Sora, the brunet would probably have a spazz attack.  "Anyway, it may be possible for me to have a body of my own so that I don't have to live in your head anymore.  How do you feel about that?"

"That would be  _ awesome _ !  I'm tired of listening to your complaints anyway."

"Hey!  This is coming from  _ you _ , who asked me if I made you  _ gay _ ."

Sora pouted at this.  "I was just  _ wondering _ ."

"Then go make out with  _ Riku _ , don't ask  _ me _ ."

"Who's making out with me now?" Riku asked, as he had just wandered in on their conversation.

"NO ONE!" Sora yelled at the same time that Roxas calmly replied "Sora."

"Uh.  Sora, I don't really know how to tell you this, but-"

"BOYS!  Jeez, what is  _ wrong _ with you guys?  You're acting like little kids and it's giving me a headache.  Either have a civil conversation or take your sexual tension somewhere else," Kairi said, massaging her fingers into her scalp in an effort to prevent the oncoming headache.

The three boys gaped at her.

"You're  _ teenagers _ , what do you  _ expect _ to have?  Especially since you've spent the past two years focused on 'saving the worlds' and all of that, so you've had no sexual escapades.  Well, except for Roxas."

Roxas flailed a bit at this.  "I wouldn't have  _ sexual tension _ if Axel were here," he grumbled.

Riku and Sora continued to just gape.

"Oh come on.  Either do something about it or ignore it and let the rest of us live in  _ peace _ ," Kairi said.  And then she resumed her conversation with Naminé.

Thus began the AWKWARD SILENCE which lasted for a good five minutes.

"So, uh, about me getting a body..." Roxas began, finally breaking the awkward silence.

"Right!  Let's talk about that.  That's important," Sora said, happy to be moving on to another topic.

"I was reading over his notes and such, and Zexion says that he'd probably be able to do it.  And that's basically it. But Sora, you need to think about this too. Roxas is kind of a part of you," Riku said.

"I know, but have you noticed how  _ different _ we are?" Sora replied, flailing his arms around.

"I  _ have _ noticed and I've been thinking for  _ weeks _ that it's not healthy for you to have to share a body," Riku stated.

"Then let's go for it!  What's the worst that could happen?" Sora asked.

"I could continue to be stuck with you," Roxas said.

"Okay, then let's go find, um, Zexion, right?"

"Right, you've never met him."

"Then tell me about him!  You mentioned him when you were telling me about your time here, so..." Sora said, referring to Riku's stories of his adventures while they were separated.

"Well, you'll meet him in a moment.  I wouldn't want to ruin your first impressions."

"Okay then!"

**-x-x-x-x-x-**

"I'm Sora!"

Zexion looked up from his work, startled by the sudden voice to his left.

"Congratulations?" he asked sarcastically.

"You must be Zexion," Sora said.

"I am."

"Riku says you can help me and Roxas!"

"Yes, I can."

"Will you?   _ Please? _ "

"I suppose."

"Okay!  Great! Thank you soooo much!"

Zexion shook his head.  Sora could have given Demyx a run for his money for the most hyper award.  Sheesh, did the kid ever shut up? It was almost hard to believe that this hyperactive teenager was the reason that Demyx was...no more.

"Sora."

"Hmm?"

"I'm going to be honest with you right now, just so you know what you're getting into.   _ I don't like you. _  You destroyed the only person that I  _ did _ like.  I'm doing this because it will help  _ me _ as well, and as a favor to the only other member of the Organization that's left."

Sora had the decency to look guilty.  "I'm...wow, I'm sorry. I just thought..."

"That Nobodies don't feel, right?"

"Er, yeah."

"Well, they  _ do _ , so get that idea out of your head  _ right now _ ."

"Um, okay!"

**-x-x-x-x-x-**

It was almost a week before either machine reached completion.  The cloning one was finished first, as it was slightly less complex and fairly important (though both were, this was the one that Riku was pushing and, despite their past differences, he and Zexion had begun to get along).  During this time, Kairi had gone home to tell their families that they hadn't just randomly vanished again, that they were okay, and that they wouldn't be gone  _ too _ long this time.

"There.  Finished.  It should work perfectly now," Zexion said, gesturing to the cloning machine.  "Are you ready?"

Roxas looked nervous.  "As ready I'll ever be, I suppose."

"Don't be nervous!" Sora exclaimed.  "Everything will go fine and then you can stop being transparent and sometimes having books fly through you if you're not concentrating and you won't have to live in my head anymore!"

"Yes, not being stuck with  _ you _ would definitely be an improvement," Roxas said in reply.

He stepped into the machine, trying to ignore his nerves. Like he said to Sora, not being in his head would be an improvement, but that thought didn't change how nervous he was. He just had to get through this, like every other weird thing that happened around him.

Zexion closed the door to the chamber and Roxas was left alone with his thoughts, which was somehow  _even worse_ now. He couldn't get his worries out of his head, as well as what felt like every single bad memory he had of the Organization doing terrible experiments. Why couldn't he shake the feeling that this was just another one of those? He knew how they felt about keyblade wielders; what if this was just a chance to use him again?

He squeezed his eyes shut. He wanted to block it out and just wake up to it being over.

There was a flash of light and growing warmth, and then everything went black.

"Roxas?  Roxas, are you okay?" Sora asked, prodding at him.

Roxas groaned.  Everything was slightly blurry, so he blinked his eyes a few times to try to clear it up.  He raised a hand to brush his hair out his eyes as well, and froze.

His arm was completely solid.

It had worked!  His hand flew to his chest, resting over where his heart should be, and he broke out into a happy smile as he felt the faint heartbeat.

"I'm fine," Roxas finally answered, brushing Sora's hand away.

"Yay!" Sora exclaimed happily, startling Roxas as he hugged him.

"Okay Sora, that's enough," Kairi said, pulling him away.  Roxas mouthed 'thank you' to her and she smiled at him.

Sora was rambling on to Riku happily, thanking him for the idea and all that.  Zexion came over to talk to Roxas, who was now sitting up and examining himself.

"I see you appreciate it."

"Thanks, Zexion.  I didn't expect to actually, you know, have a  _ heart _ ," Roxas said in reply.

"I figured you'd be tired of sharing everything with Sora," Zexion replied.

"I didn't even realize that it was  _ possible _ ," Roxas said happily.

"You never know until you try."

"So...does that make me no longer a Nobody?"

"I suppose so."

Roxas looked at Zexion sadly, the final Nobody of the Organization working intently on his other machine, one that would open a path into darkness.

"You're the last one left," Roxas stated simply.

Zexion glanced over at him before answering.  "I am."

Without even thinking about it, Roxas asked "How do you feel about that?"

Zexion smiled bitterly.  "I don't really  _ know _ , now do I?"

Roxas look apologetically at the lilac haired young man.  "Er, sorry about that..."

He waved his arm in a gesture of indifference.  "Doesn't really matter. Anyway, I'll probably have this done by tomorrow or the day after, so stop back then."

"Thanks."


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _Notes from Dec. 2018: I...had to write a couple connections in a few chapters, but other than that, everything is pretty much untouched. This is unfortunately all I've got, but I hope you enjoy it anyway!_

Three days later, Zexion had finished the other machine.  Everyone was sitting around the laboratory room, Sora chattering on and on just to fill the nervous air.

"It's now or never," Zexion said, gesturing to Roxas.  "Ready?"

Roxas nodded, walking over to stand in front of the machine.

"Just hold onto this – it's how we'll get you back – and keep this in your ear so we can talk to you," Zexion said, handing Roxas an earpiece and a bracelet thing that Roxas slipped onto his wrist.  "A portal to the dark will open and all you have to do is step through. Just like any other darkness portal that you'd use."

"Okay, I got it."

"You'll only have about an hour or two before you'll start fading into the darkness as well, so be quick," Zexion said.

"An hour.  Okay. I'm ready," Roxas replied.

"Be careful," Kairi said, her voice full of worry.

"I will," Roxas said.  "Start this thing up already; I think Sora's going to start bawling on me."

"I am not!" Sora exclaimed, but his voice cracked on 'not' and he almost broke into tears.  "What if you  _ die _ ?"

"I'm not going to die."

"But what if you  _ do _ ?  I'll miss you.  What will I  _ do _ ?"  Sora  _ did _ break into tears at this, clinging to Riku, who was the unfortunate one who had sat next to Sora.  Kairi had been smart and was standing on the other side of the room near Roxas.

"Sora, get yourself together!  I'll be fine," Roxas said.

"It's ready," Zexion said, gesturing to the pure black portal that had been opened by the machine.

Roxas nodded and was about to walk through when Zexion grabbed his arm and hissed in his ear "Bring back Demyx, or I  _ swear _ I'll make you regret it."

He gulped.  "I will," he said, and then walked in.

The first thing Roxas had to say about this world was that it was  **dark** .  It was pure pitch black, darker than anything he'd ever experienced.  It made his Organization jacket look gray in comparison.

The only break in the black was the long winding white path that he was currently standing on, which stretched on endlessly in each direction.  He sighed. He may as well start walking.

Roxas didn't know how long he'd been walking for when he stumbled on Demyx.  And when he said stumbled, he  _ meant _ it.  He'd been walking along, looking for  _ anything _ out of the ordinary bleak black landscape when he fell on top of something.  Or rather,  _ someone _ .

"Ugh, what?" he said, looking to see what he'd fallen over.  "Demyx?!"

The blond sitarist looked at Roxas in shock.  "Roxas? What are you doing here?"

"Actually, I'm looking for you and Axel."

"What?"

"It's a long story and it's probably an even longer walk," Roxas replied, standing up.  "Are you coming or not?"

Demyx hurriedly stood up as well and jogged a bit to catch up with Roxas.  "Of course! I'm tired of being all by myself in this world. It's so creepy."

"Then you're lucky that I'm here to get you out of it."   
  
"What?!  Tell me what's going on!" Demyx whined.

"I rejoined with Sora and lost the majority of my memories.  After Sora and Riku defeated Xemnas, we returned to Destiny Islands and Naminé restored all my lost memories."

"Oh man, Roxas, I'm sorry..."

"Having a heart hurts like a bitch, Demyx.  But anyway, Sora decided that it would probably be possible to rescue a Nobody from this dark world, so we took a trip to Castle Oblivion."

Demyx started at this.

"And so Zexion helped us build a portal machine to get here, and here I am."

"Zexion's still okay?"

"Yes."

Demyx hugged him.  "I was so worried!"

"Demyx, if you could let go of me?"

"Oh, yeah, sorry.  So, uh...now what?"

"We find Axel and get the hell out of here."

"Sounds like a plan!  Let's hurry then!"

**-x-x-x-x-x-**

_ "Roxas?" _

"Yeah?"

_ "You need to come back soon.  You've been there for almost an hour already." _

"NO!  No, not yet.  Just a little longer.  I haven't found Axel yet."

_ "Did you find anyone else?" _

"I'm not telling you unless you let me stay longer."

_ "Roxas!  Don't be stubborn like that!" _

"Just give me more time!"

_ "One more hour then, but if you fade because of your stubbornness do  _ not _ come crying to me." _

"I won't.  See you in an hour."

Demyx was looking at him questionably.  "What were you doing?"

Roxas pointed to the little microphone and speaker thing in his ear.  "It's how I can keep in touch with everyone."

"Oh, okay.  So we have a time limit?"

"Just one more hour.  We're going to have to rush this search."

"Got it!  Axel shouldn't be  _ too _ hard to find with his bright hair!"

"Obviously.  Let's hurry this up."

**-x-x-x-x-x-**

"Roxas, it's been 45 minutes.  This is your 15 minute warning."

_ "Fuck, Zexion, do you even understand how big this place is?" _

"I'd imagine quite large, but  _ you _ are going to get stuck there if you don't hurry back."

_ "Is that Zexion?  Roxas, I want to talk to Zexy!" _

Zexion stared at the communicator in his hand.  Demyx. Roxas had found Demyx.

"God damn it Roxas, if you aren't ready to get your ass back here in 15 minutes, I'm bringing you back whether you want to or not."

_ "Zexion?" _

"Demyx?"

_ "Zexy!  You're okay!  I was so worried about you!" _

"Of course I'm okay.  I'm not the one who faded into darkness."

_ "But Zexy...I'll be back, right?  Roxas said..." _

"Of course you'll be back.  That's why Roxas is there."

_ "Okay...15 minutes, right?" _

"Yes."  Zexion was gripping the edges of a table, in the middle of an emotional overload.  Fuck whoever had said that Nobodies couldn't feel. He'd been less emotional as Ienzo, but that was probably because he hadn't had anyone special.  All he'd had was his work.

_ "Wait a sec- Roxas!  Roxas, where are you running to?" _

_ "Axel!" _

_ "What?  Zexy, I think Roxas found Axel!" _

"Then go and  _ hold onto him _ when I'm going to bring you two back, okay?"

_ "Got it!" _

_ **-x-x-x-x-x-** _

Roxas was in a state of shock.  He'd seen it, just a glimpse near the edge of the white path, but it was there.  A shock a bright red hair that could belong to none other than Axel.

He could faintly hear Demyx following him, but nothing else mattered at the moment.  Roxas peered over the edge and saw Axel.

Roxas froze.  He couldn't keep track of all the emotions that were flying through his head.

"Axel?"

The red head looked up, and Roxas almost exploded.  Bright green eyes, almost glowing in the dark around them – peered up at him.  He couldn't breathe. Axel. It was fucking  _ Axel _ .

"Roxas?  You're...here?  What are you doing here?"

"Looking-" his voice cracked.  "I'm looking for you."

"For...me?"

"I remember now!  Everything! Naminé fixed my memories and I  _ had _ to come find you.  It hurt so bad Axel, missing you.  I didn't know what I was going to  _ do _ !"

"Roxy...calm down, okay?  I'm here now. Don't worry," Axel said soothingly.

"Then what are you doing down there?"

"Oh, this?  Yeah, a couple of the other members found me and tossed me down here for being a traitor and all...if you could get me out?"

"Roxas, we have to go!" Demyx yelled.  "Zexion says-"

"Fuck what Zexion says.  Tell him to give me five more minutes," Roxas snapped.  He was getting Axel out of here.

_ "All you have to do is hold onto him!" _ Zexion yelled through the communicator.

"Axel!  Axel, give me your hand!" Roxas yelled, desperately reaching for Axel.  "Fuck! Just a little farther..."

Roxas felt Demyx grab onto his other hand and he could hear Zexion yelling about something in the background, but all that mattered right then was getting a hold of Axel.  He stretched his arm as far as it would go, leaning over the edge of the white path.  _ Almost there _ .

And then there was a blinding flash of light and he could feel himself being ripped from the world, but he could feel someone's fingers curled around his.  Familiar fingers, long and delicate, that he would recognize anywhere.

_ Axel. _

Roxas snapped his eyes open and blinked at his surroundings.  Pure white. They were back in Castle Oblivion in a heap on the floor.  Not the most graceful landing, but they were back. He could hear everyone's voices buzzing around him, but none of that mattered at the moment.  Only one person, who was still gripping his hand tightly like it was his only lifeline.

"Axel.  I was so worried that-" Roxas began, but was cut off as Axel pulled him close into a deep kiss.

**-x-x-x-x-x-**

Demyx stared at the white, white walls of Castle Oblivion.  He was...alive again. No more being stuck in the dark nothingness of an unknown world.  No, now he was free.

He really needed to find Zexion  _ right that moment _ and thank him.

Zexion found him instead, looking, for a lack of a better word,  _ emotional _ .

"Zexion!  Oh gods, Zexy, I've missed you so mmf-"

Zexion was having none of that, instead pulling the slightly taller boy down for a passionate kiss.  Mmmyeah.

Sora, Riku, and Kairi sat and stared in shock.

Sora was the first to say anything, flailing his arms around as he exclaimed "Did you guys actually  _ do _ anything in the Organization, or did you just make out all day?  Seriously!"

Riku and Kairi laughed at this.

"No, Sora, I think they did a bit more than  _ make out _ all day," Riku replied, smirking.

"What do you- oh my god Riku!  I don't need to think about that!  You're so  **mean** to me!  That's just...agh!"

Kairi whacked Riku on the head.  "Look, now you've broken Sora."

"I think he came that way."

"Riku!"

"I'm just kidding."  Riku smirked again. "Maybe."

"Well...I  _ guess _ I can see what you mean."

"You're  _ both _ so mean to me!" Sora whined.  "I thought you guys were my  _ friends _ ."

"That's why we pick on you; because we love you," Kairi said.

Sora pouted.  "That doesn't make any sense.  I think you just like being  _ mean _ ."

"Well, that may be true as well," Riku said.

"Hey!  Hey!!! I saved...worlds and stuff!  You can't be mean to me!"

"Speaking of that, Sora, are we ever going to go back and  _ visit _ ?" Kairi asked.  "Unlike you two boys,  _ I _ never got to see most of them.  I only saw Traverse Town, and briefly Hollow Bastion and Twilight Town."

"Hmm, I guess so.  I just wish you weren't  _ mean to me _ ," Sora replied.

Riku and Kairi laughed again.


End file.
